financial and legal incentives to participate in group activities; some form

of penalties or coercion may be needed. A multi-tiered organization may be

needed to provide groups that are small enough for face-to-face interaction,

while providing the foundation for other organizations large enough to

provide suitable economies of scale. Innovative organizational strategies

are needed to deal with these dilemmas. Moreover, astute political

leadership will be needed to overcome opposition to having farmer groups.

At the same time, individualized instruction should not be discarded

entirely. As farmers get more advanced, they will need specialized,

individual assistance in making complex managerial decisions.
 Special attention can be given to make sure the extension

system has the capacity to learn useful ideas about agricultural technology

from advanced, experienced farmers. Particularly when research is not well

advanced, this can be a useful source of relevant ideas which can be trans-

ferred to other farmers, and can be brought into more formal research

programs. In these situations, agents need special training on how to

learn from farmers, but this should not undermine the need for well-trained

agents who can give the farmers the technical sophistication they demand.

Undoubtedly, the correct combination of policies will vary from place to

place and can be ascertained best by trial and error.

 Finally, it must be remembered that the formal extension system

is only one of many sources of information for farmers. The informal,

spontaneous extension process--in which farmers get information from friends,

relatives, merchants, etc.--is always very important. Thought should be

given to how the formal extension system can reinforce and take advantage